Salameh is being investigated in several European countries. The Swiss Finma recently sanctioned HSBC Private Bank for highly risky business dealings with the former central bank chief.
The former Lebanese central bank chief Riad Salameh has been arrested after months of international investigations. The 73-year-old Salameh was arrested after being questioned in the Palace of Justice in Beirut, the state agency NNA reported. He is accused of several financial crimes, including embezzlement of public funds and enrichment. Salameh has repeatedly denied the accusations.
According to judicial circles, the questioning mainly revolved around the alleged embezzlement of public funds amounting to more than 40 million US dollars, it was said.
Salameh headed the central bank of the small Mediterranean country for around 30 years, which is in the midst of the worst economic and financial crisis in its history. He left the post last year. A successor was not appointed due to disputes between the various political camps. The central bank is temporarily headed by the first deputy governor Wassim Mansuri. Lebanon is currently without a president, and the government is only in office in an acting capacity.
Salameh was investigated on suspicion of money laundering and other financial crimes in Lebanon and in several European countries, including France, Germany, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office initiated the proceedings based on a suspicious transaction report from a Geneva bank and submitted a request for legal assistance to Lebanon in 2021.
The Swiss Financial Markets Supervisory Authority (Finma) sanctioned HSBC Geneva for dealings with the former head of the Lebanese central bank. According to Finma, the subsidiary of the major British bank seriously violated its due diligence obligations to prevent money laundering in dealings with two politically exposed persons.
Critics blame him and the political leadership for the monetary policy that has led to the massive economic crisis in Lebanon. The local currency has lost more than 95 percent of its value over the past five years.